ARP Racing Results

(Bill W) June 30, 2009 – Jesse “The Rocket” Hockett went into last weekend hoping for a win at the Daniel McMillin Memorial.  The result was a strong seventh place run.  He did, however, win again at the Double X Speedway in California, Missouri on Sunday, while mixing in a road trip to Richmond, Virginia and back again!

There was some added competition on Sunday night at Double X.  Jesse started third in both his heat and the feature, and won both.  “There was a solid field there this week,” he says.  “Seth Bergman (from Washington) was there, and so were Derrik Ortega (from New Mexico) and Darren Long (from Ohio).”

The win was Jesse’s fifth of the season at Double X, and the eighteenth of his career.  “We ended up lapping all but three cars,” he says of his run.  “We were running as well there as we have all year.”

Friday, it was off to Richmond for another pavement race with USAC.  After registering 16th quick, Jesse finished 14th in the feature.  “We actually weren’t too bad, we were just a little off, and when you’re a little off on a track as big as Richmond (7/8 mile), it shows,” he says.  “We were about three tenths off.  We were off a half-second to a second in practice, and with the help of Robert Hubbard and Chris Santucci, we at least got in the ballgame.  They definitely helped me a lot.”

It was a long drive back overnight (just shy of 1000 miles) to the Lake Ozark Speedway near Eldon, Missouri and the Daniel McMillin Memorial.  “We got back in plenty of time,” assures Jesse.  “The track was a lot different in the heat than it normally is.  We tried our regular setup and it didn’t work for us (finished third).  We made some adjustments for the B, and we were actually really good in that.”

Jesse won the B, and lined up inside row nine for the main event.  Immediately, he began to pick off cars.  “We left the car with the same setup for the A, and we were really good,” he says.  “We were able to get all the way up to sixth, and I got to racing really hard with Paul McMahan.  We were racing in the slick part of the track so much; it took its toll on my tires.”

In the end, he would finish seventh.  “We were able to win that battle to get into sixth,” says Jesse.  “On the last lap, Jack Dover got so hard into the cushion that I thought he was going to flip.  I pitched it sideways to avoid him, and Gary Wright got by me, so we finished second.”

Jesse was happy with the way the event honoring his late cousin and crew chief turned out.  “It was a pretty good run, and the race turned out to be a good one,” he says.  “It was a good crowd, a good car count, and good racing overall.  I was happy about that part of it.”

So far, Jesse has been able to juggle the USAC National Sprint Car Series with the Lucas Oil ASCS National Series.  For the first time, the schedules will clash this weekend, forcing a decision.  “We’re going to change our direction a little bit, and go with our original plan of running with ASCS, and just run the big USAC races whenever we can,” he says.

Thursday night, Jesse will run with the USCS series at the Camden Speedway in Tennessee.  Friday and Saturday, he’ll compete at the Riverside International Speedway in West Memphis, Arkansas with ASCS.  The Rock ‘N Roll 50-lap feature will be contested on Saturday night at “The Ditch”.

June 23, 2009 – Jesse “the Rocket” Hockett was victorious in two more feature events last weekend, giving the Warsaw, Missouri sprint car driver a lucky 13 wins on the season, matching his car number.  After devastating an ASCS-Midwest/WOW field on Friday night at US36 Raceway, he won again at the Double X Speedway near California, Missouri on Sunday night.  Oh yeah, he mixed in a pavement race in Michigan on Saturday!  This weekend will be highlighted by Saturday’s Daniel McMillin Memorial at the Lake Ozark Speedway near Eldon, Missouri on Saturday.

With the weather iffy on Friday, Jesse and the VKCC Motorsports/Tom Buch team were planning on a trip to race on Saturday at the Kalamazoo Speedway in Michigan.  When the rain held off at the US36 Raceway near Cameron, plans changed in a hurry…too much of a hurry.  The rig ran out of fuel, and the trip was made without wings.  “We didn’t think we were close to the empty line, but we ran out,” says Jesse of the fuel gaffe.  “We learned how far we can push the new truck.  We were banking on Cameron raining out to be honest.  We had put our dirt car upstairs (in the trailer) and our pavement car was down.  After we loaded, we totally forgot the wings.  We had nine sitting there.”

A call to Mark Burch was placed, and Jesse spent the night with a black “bananawagon” #1m wing on top of the sprint car.  “I have to thank Mark Burch for lending us the wing, but I have to question his sanity for loaning it to us at Cameron,” says Jesse.  “Lending us a wing is one thing, but to do it at Cameron is another!”

The high-banked 1/3 mile was its typical bucking bronco self.  “It is always rough and heavy,” says Jesse.  “It has a lot of treacherous characteristics.  I like the track, because most of the other guys don’t.  They don’t run as hard as they need to, and I run where most don’t even think about running.  The harder I drive the car there, the better it handles.”

Lining up in the back of a heat that included Brian Brown, Chad Humston, Jack Dover, Josh Fisher and Mike Boston was not what the doctor ordered, but Jesse drove from eighth to fifth.  Starting in the lucky 13th spot in the main event, “the Rocket” was surging.  He was to third by lap seven, and would eventually make the winning pass on lap 12.  “The heat was tough, but we were able to get through it and make it to the A,” he says.  “Once we did that, I knew with a couple of yellow flags that we would have a shot.  As it turned out, I’m not sure we needed them.”

The win made the 600 mile trip overnight to Kalamazoo a little sweeter.  That ended quickly as Jesse struggled to a 14th place finish.  “We just struggled getting set up there,” says Jesse.  “We had no notes on the place, and with not a lot of experience on pavement, that makes it tough without a baseline to go off of.  It’s a guessing game and we were totally wrong.  I’m looking forward to this week at Richmond (Friday).  Chris Santucci and Robert Hubbard who help with our Silver Crown car will be down there to help me along on the pavement.”

The rig steered back home, and Jesse was home in time to capture the win at Double X Speedway Sunday.  “Randy Martin and I had a good race going,” he says.  “We had a couple of slide jobs back and forth the first three laps.  Another five, and I tried to slide him and we were side by side when the yellow came out.”

Though Jesse stayed up front, Martin made a charge that got the fans going.  “He ended up with a flat tire on a red flag so he had to go to the back,” says Jesse.  “I hated to see it, because it was going to be a good race between us.  He ended up coming back through there to second on my rear bumper with eight to go.  We were able to take off to the win after that.”

Daniel McMillin Memorial Saturday!

The Lucas Oil ASCS National Series visits the Lake Ozark Speedway on Saturday for the Daniel McMillin Memorial.  The race will honor Jesse’s late cousin and crew chief.  “I’m really excited about that,” says Jesse.  “I’m looking forward to the race and to remembering Daniel.  It’s a time to enjoy the memories and have a good time.  That’s what Daniel was about.”

Surprises are in store for the #13.  “We have a special paint scheme for this one race only,” says Jesse.  “It’s a pretty crazy deal that will surprise a lot of people.  We’re going for the win too!  It’s a great track, and there will be a lot of great drivers there.  A lot of them were buddies with Daniel and I.  This race is all about him and having a great time.”